Yan Gao
Verified Expert in Project Management
Project Manager
Abu Dhabi, United Arab Emirates
Toptal member since November 7, 2022
Yan is a dynamic and results-driven digital transformation leader with over 25 years of experience in software development and project management within international and diverse environments. He has a proven track record in establishing and leading project management offices (PMOs), executing high-impact digital transformation initiatives, and managing substantial budgets exceeding AED 100 million.
Project Highlights
Expertise
- Digital Transformation Program Management
- Engineering Program Management (EPM)
- IT Governance
- Leadership
- Performance Management
- Portfolio Management
- Project Management
- Project Management Office (PMO)
Work Experience
AVP IT PMO
Aldar PJSC
- Collaborated with senior leadership and business partners to establish the PMO's mission, goals, and operating model.
- Led the definition and implementation of the group's digital strategy, encompassing infrastructure, ERP, CRM, and security initiatives.
- Directed the identification and implementation of project management processes, methodologies, tools, and standards to ensure consistency.
- Developed and managed project and program budgets, overseeing resource allocation, reallocation, and prioritization based on evolving business needs, resource constraints, risk factors, and interdependencies.
- Ensured the alignment of project management investments and initiatives with the organization’s strategic objectives and priorities.
- Oversaw the procurement planning for the entire department, ensuring efficient and cost-effective sourcing strategies.
Head of PMO
Digital14
- Led the setup and execution of corporate PMO governance, drove the corporate strategic initiatives across the organization, and automated the performance KPIs.
- Oversaw the agile transformation for the engineering development process.
- Deployed the digital platform for project management, resource management, and finance integration based on the Microsoft EPM system.
- Managed key strategic projects and initiatives across departments.
PMO Director
DartMatter
- Led the setup of a PMO organization across the group level.
- Managed the development and deployment of a key security product.
- Led the agile transformation and SSDLC initiative in engineering teams.
Senior Technical Manager
Irdeto
- Supported the VP of engineering in optimizing engineering operations.
- Led the highly scalable distributed OTT solution in the media protection domain based on the Java platform, SOA, and microservices.
- Worked extensively with product management and service operations teams to lead product development and deployment.
Technical Manager
Irdeto
- Built the development teams from scratch and led the project initiations.
- Led the initiative to develop the complete continuous integration process. Under my leadership, the product quality was improved dramatically—known bugs dropped from over 100+ to around five, and field issues were only reported once or twice a year.
- Spearheaded the agile transformation for our media protection software development.
Senior Project Manager
Irdeto
- Drove and coordinated the conditional access system development from definition to release across multiple teams in Europe and Asia.
- Developed the conditional access system release process and engaged different project teams globally.
- Led the project transfer and migrations between the US, China, and the Netherlands.
Project History
Group ERP Strategy Implementation
Led the definition of the group ERP strategy. Drove the implementation of the ERP strategy as a workstream lead and PMO.
SSDLC Setup Across Engineering Teams
Initiated and set up the secure SDLC methodology across engineering department.
• Set up the project to transform the current engineering development process into a more secure and mature one.
• Evaluated the current status.
• Worked with a consultant company to do gap analysis and goal setting.
• Drove the activities to implement the process.
Digital Rights Management Product
Developed and delivered the digital rights management product for the media protection industry.
• Took over the project from the US to the Netherlands.
• Built a team with 25 engineers.
• Set up the complete end-to-end scrum development process.
• Led the setup of the DevOps environment.
• Managed the delivery process to the managed services team.
Secure Messenger Product
Launched and managed the development and delivery of a secure messenger product.
The whole development used the Scrum framework, which had incremental releases to client environments.
Education
Master's Degree in Business Administration (MBA)
Erasmus University Rotterdam - Rotterdam, Netherlands
Bachelor's Degree in Mechanical and Electrical Engineering and Computer Science
Beijing University of Technology - Beijing, China
Certifications
Project Management Professional (PMP)
Project Management Institute (PMI)
Skills
Tools
Jira, Slack, Zoom, Trello, Microsoft Project, Microsoft Power BI
Paradigms
Agile Software Development, Agile Project Management, Scrum, Change Management, Agile, Management
Platforms
SharePoint 365, iOS
Other
Project Management, IT Project Management, Project Management Office (PMO), Digital Transformation Program Management, Engineering Program Management (EPM), Leadership, Portfolio Management, IT Governance, Performance Management, Strategic Planning & Execution, Agile Transformation, Software Development Lifecycle (SDLC), Estimation & Planning, Project Coordination, Complex Program Management, Stakeholder Management, Scrum Master, Cross-functional Collaboration, Risk Management, Communication Management, Agile Coaching, Program Management, Business Administration, Software Development, Technical Project Management, IT Security, Minimum Viable Product (MVP), Feature Prioritization, Proof of Concept (POC), International Projects, Startups, Consulting, Migration, Delivery Management, ITIL, Digital Transformation, Business Process Automation, Financials, Oracle Fusion Financials, SAP
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